Abstract

We performed high-temperature microcompression tests on micron-sized pillar samples fabricated from metallic glass near the glass transition temperature to investigate the homogeneous deformation behavior. Samples were invariably deformed uniformly. The strength was observed to decrease with increasing temperature and decreasing strain rate. Plastic flow behavior can be described by a shear transition zone model. The activation energy and the size of the basic flow unit were both deduced and compared favorably with the theory.

Received 25 November 2008Accepted 22 January 2009Published online 11 February 2009

Acknowledgments:

This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, under Contract No. DE-FG02-06ER46338 with the University of Tennessee, and the National Science Council of Taiwan, ROC, under the Project No. of NSC 95-2221-E-110-013-MY3.